Back in February I sent the Los Angeles-based boutique cycling gear company an old event jersey and $250 and asked them to upcycle it into something that I would actually wear.
I got it in the mail the other day.
It took a lot longer than expected, but in February I don’t think they or I expected they’d be spending all their time making fabric masks. But then COVID-19 happened. Their normal lead time is 3-4 weeks they say. So plan ahead.
It’s awesome. At first I was a bit disappointed that they didn’t use that much of the jersey, but when I put it on I realized how much nicer their fabric is. The fact is limiting my exposure to cheapo event jersey fabric makes it a better jersey.
And you really can’t go wrong with made-to-measure. Fit is a huge part of what makes a jersey comfortable. Probably more than the actual fabric used. I have impossibly skinny arms and too big a neck. But this fits me perfectly.
And they know how to cut a cycling jersey. This one is meant to be worn with hands on the drops. It looks a tad droopy under the arms at the café but doesn’t feel tight across the underarms when I’m… you know … cycling.
I have three quibbles:
- For that price, I would expect a zippered valuables pocket. There is none.
- For that price, and on a non-minimalist jersey like this, I would expect a little fabric zipper cover at the collar. This keeps the zipper away from your skin and keeps it from falling down.
- I think they added a bit too much Brandt-Sorenson branding to the strips of upcycled jersey fabric on the back.